Atlanta Advances Automobile Alternatives; Parking Minimums Persist

A newly approved ordinance is Atlanta will prohibit “suburban-style drive-thrus and drive-ups and gas pumps near the Beltline,” according to an article by Thomas Wheatley for Axios Atlanta. The changes are part of “a nearly $5 billion public investment designed to make Atlanta easier to access without a car,” adds Wheatley.

Making less progress, however, is a similar ordinance that would have removed parking minimums with one-half mile of the Beltline. According to Wheatley, “The city and some neighborhoods have used so-called ‘parking minimums’ policies to push back against problem bars and other nightlife businesses.”

Writing for ThreadAtl, Darin Givens provides additional insight into the failure of the parking reform legislation, noting that cities around the country are rolling back parking requirements to reduce car dependency, greenhouse gas emissions, and lower the cost of housing.